Arsenal has closed in on signing Willian for free after they met his demand of a three-year deal.
The Brazilian has been in fine form for the Blues for the past seven years, and he was one of the stars in the Premier League since the restart.
He has been in talks with the Blues over extending his current deal, but there has been a problem with what both parties want as he wants a three-year deal, but the Blues have maintained they can only offer him a two-year deal.
France Football via Sun Sports is reporting that Arsenal has met his demand for a three-year contract and that talks are at an advanced stage now.
It also adds that Willian seems to be looking for an additional year to make it four years, but it remains unclear if the Gunners will give in to that.
Mikel Arteta has led Arsenal to the FA Cup, which also secured a return to European football for the Gunners.
The Spaniard will expect the club to back him even if the player is a free agent as he looks to build his team around his managerial style.
If he joins, he will become the second player to join Arsenal from Chelsea recently, after they secured David Luiz from their rival last summer.
I like willian he’s a good player so hopefully we get that done, and yeah people will say he’s a dinosaur at 31 but look at Ronaldo at 35 still as lethal as ever and no I’m not comparing Willian with Ronaldo only their ages 😂
We’ll be signing you next, Kev 😝
Haha a 2 year deal Sue call it a day on my 40th birthday 😂😂 apparently Jadon Sancho is better than Mane, Salah, and Aubameyang now.. never kicked a ball in the premier League but he’s the best talk about delusional 🤔
Not Auba 😉 Imagine listening to the mancs after he signs??!! Oh jeez….
A lot of money!!
Or mane and Salah 😜 they’re already giving it large Sue and he hasn’t even signed yet 😂 the dream frontline they call it lol I’m sorry I don’t rate Rashford he thinks he’s Ronaldo with his copycat freekicks that usually fly over the Stretford end 😜 and Martial is no Henry even though they think he is, he’s more like Louis Saha than Henry 😂 if we get Willian, Partey and Coutinho I will be buzzing 😄
Hahaha brilliant descriptions 😄
Yes, will be soooo happy if we get Partey… !!
Can Willian play a more central role? Otherwise it doesn’t make a lot of sense to me.
Or does Auba get more apps at CF? More versatility among the front line. Definitely have a pair of the best FK takers with he and Pepe.
📝 Willian to Arsenal is a done deal and will be announced in the coming week, according to the ultra reliable
@GoonerTaIk
Willian passed his best long time ago and most of his recent performances were crap. Offerring him three years contract is crazy.
Sue, how do you rate Willian, Pepe and Zaha in order of ability for Mikel’s vision?
For me, it has to be in the order I have listed them, but not sure how the likes of Saka and Martinelli will be able to progress if we do sign Willian.
A reported three year deal seems a major commitment for a 31 year old and goodness knows what salary he will be offered.
Pepe is growing on me, slowly 😆 I’d switch him with Willian in the 3 you mentioned. He’s 32 on Sunday…
I’m baffled, Ken.. he won’t warm the bench surely, if he’s on a hefty wage, so I’m intrigued as to who’ll make way… Coutinho is still being mentioned… lots going on.. be fun (I hope) watching it all unfold.. the joys of the TW!!!
What’s you Twitter handle Sue? I see you follow TransferChecker…
GoonerTalk says Kia is really pushing for Coutinho
I don’t have an account, Eddie. I’m just nosey on TC 😂
There will be a whole of matches for the likes of Martineli and Saka to play in. What with our involvement in the Europa League and the domestic cup competitions.
Signing Willian or any other player should not negatively affect their development, I think
Ken Willian is reportedly taking a paycut to sign for us, the only thing is he’s getting a big sign on fee and bloooody Kia will get a huge bonus.
Kia is also trying his best to see that Coutinho to Arsenal works out.
We’ll be paying 120k out of Coutinho’s Salary, Barcelona would pay the rest… The total fee we might get him for will be between 15 -18 million.
Regarding your question, like I told Sue today, I don’t have a problem with signing Willian as long as we don’t pay him anything close to 140k.
Signing him is actually good, Lacazette will be sold if the offer comes in. Plus Willian is old enough to create support when needed and yet still get benched. I don’t see him hindering Saka/Martinelli.
Laca will leave, Auba will be going back to the CF position in a 4-3-3, Willian will provide experience and still will allow the kids contribute and blend fully to the team in two years time.
You weren’t exactly thinking we should start next season with just Saka/Martinelli, Auba/Nketiah and Pepe/Nelson alone were you?
Plus as long aa Arteta wants him I’ll give the support, the moment he gets announced, I’ll forget the fact that I don’t want him and I’ll support him
I like that
Yes Sue. It will be a good signing. He has the experience. He can dribble. He scores free kicks as well. We need players who can turn up in big games. Signing him for free makes sense.
Aubameyang extending, Ceballos(permanent), Coutinho(loan) and Thomas Partey.
That will be a perfect transfer window
Perfect indeed, Skills!! 👌
Willian is diminutive like Santi Cazorla. As Santi is proving, 25 goals in the last two seasons, that players like that are able to carry on till they are 35. When Willian first went to Chelsea I thought they had bought a pup. How wrong I was and he has matured with age and is now in his peak. On a free….that would be brilliant.
Exactly Sean. We need creativity on the flanks. Getting a player of that caliber on a free makes sense.
Willian is a good player with a lot of premier league experiences,but I don’t think he will be used effectively as winger because your pace reduces as you get older,I will like it if Arteta use him as Central mildfielder.
For anyone interested, I was scanning some Chelsea forums to get their take. Willian has a lot of respect, it seems, and although there is hope that Ziyech can be an upgrade, most fans seem to think that they’ll miss him (although many agreed that 3 years was a risk).
Contract wise, he’s on £120k at the moment and I can’t see him getting any more at his age. Him and his agent will probably net £4-5m in sign-on fees as is the norm with big name free agents.
He’s a lad with some great qualities and doesn’t seem to have lost much pace. There’s every reason to think he could do a job as a no.10. It’s a risk. Let’s keep our fingers and toes crossed.
Willian is a good player with a lot premier league experiences,but his pace has reduce because of his age,he will not be effective playing as a winger,I hope Arteta used him as a central mildfielder
Ffs not again! I have noticed a lot of people saying that Willian will add some quality to our squad. Possibly, but everyone seems to be forgetting that every time we sign one of our rivals rejects IT NEVER WORKS OUT!
I was praying David Luiz would be the last time.
Ya….. just like you, I would rather we don’t sign him. But if we do sign him, I’m going to support him, and hope he’s a success with us.
In all honesty, I wouldn’t call Willian a reject. Chelsea are willing to give Him a 2year deal but he wants a 3 year deal. I hear Arsenal, MLS and two other clubs abroad wants him. He wants to remain in London with his family so I m guessing the move to arsenal is imminent.
Couldn’t agree more. Stop signing Chelsea’s deadwood!
If there is one Chelsea player that I admire it is Willian. His dribbles, free kicks and overall play are something any unbiased observer can’t fail to notice. There is something that many people have failed to realise about age in the current generation of players in various sports fields. There is a link between life expectancy and the manifestation of age in people. As life expectancy goes up, people’s physical abilities seem also to have followed the same trend. In the years past most professional boxers hang up their gloves at around 25-28 years. Today many of the prominent boxers are above 30 years. Does anyone remember that George Foreman became a world heavyweight champion again at 49 years after retirement of nearly twenty years? Back to football, look at Ronaldo, Santi Cazorla, Giroud, Vardy, Kolscieny etc. They are still going strong. Thus we need to reexamine the issue of age as a factor in granting contracts. Every case needs to be handled individually rather than in a generalised manner. We should discard our previously accepted notions and adapt to the changing times.
I like the player, but I don’t really get the deal. Aren’t our priorities a no. 10 and a defensive midfielder?
Although I was not in favor of Willian joining us, but Gaby is injured till year end, we have Saka /Auba on the left, Laca / Eddie upfront, Pepe/ Nelson on the other side, and since we compete in 4 competitions, that is a wafer thin squad. We need depth and bench squad too. AMN is a make shift at RB and wide MF. Willian is calm and humble chap, and is not a reject. Consider his performances to that of a 31 year old Ozil and you realize that age is not a factor for those who have fit minds and bodies.
Willian is a great player. Arsenal should get him.
Arteta is not good in spotting talented players. Unai Emery was better. He brought in Ceballos, Tierney, Gouendouzi, Pepe instead of Zaha. Willian is an average player and the age is against him. He’s gonna demand a huge salary on top of that
How many has Arteta spotted? I think only Mari and Soares both of whom came when they were injured.
Head coaches have little involvement in recruitment these days. Neither Unai or Mikel are responsible for scouting. They set out requirements for the type of player needed and recruitment do the rest.
Head coaches make the final call. Scouts only make recommendations, the head coach make an assessment of.all recommended players, then he makes the final decision. Dont write about something that you are not sure of
I can guarantee, Willian to Arsenal will be a major coup, the guy himself can score more goals in a season than lacazzette & Saka combined, we need to get him asap.
And all those who doubts his age, look at Auba 31 what he is doing at the moment.
32yr old is considered as major coup. Arsenal is not going anywhere with this kind of mentality
Willian is apparently coming for his retirement plans.For the umpteenth time,we have never sign a quality player from our rivals in recent years and willian doesn’t strike me like he will change the narrative.
Let’s stop living in denial and pretend willian is still in his peak, brethrens, we know his not.We seeing him as an option because of our limited scouting network.There are upgrades of him scattered all over waiting to be scouted.
I hope the deal falls through,but if it is successful,I will be left with no choice but to support him and make me eat my words.
His desire is to sign players like Umtiti, Boateng, Willian and Lovren. Imagine selling Bellerin and keeping Soares, selling Gouendouzi and keep hold of Xhaka. I don’t really think that Arteta will make this team better
Top Gunner, give it a rest bro..
You never say anything good or constructive about Arteta. I stand to be corrected though.
Saying Arteta doesn’t have an eye for quality players is harsh….
Relax and see what He does in his full season.
Its normal to not like all the players that are link to arsenal or even the ones the club purchase but I m excited to see how it pans out…
This is pull him down syndrome. We not gonna with this kind of players. Mark my words
Let’s not forget how little Arteta has accomplished so far. He is obviosly a decent guy but his biggest selling point is still how highly is old boss rated him. I haven’t been impressed by his personnel decisions, tho Xhaka does appear much better in MA’s scheme. Same goes for Ceballos. Defensive fortitude in last few matches was also noticeably improved. But let’s not forget that Emery almost got us to CL as a result of resiliency and defensive mindedness. Injuries are what undid us.
Getting William might take us a step forward and 2 steps backward. Having him for 3 years is bad business at the long run. Financially, no resellable value next year and he will join lacazette, kolacinac on the list.
No doubt, he is fantastic player but age is not on his side and we should not forget that he is looking for contract and after that?he might turn to ozil or Alexis.
We need young and prospective attacking midfielder like fabregas and nasri that we can still use for 5,6, 7 years.
Our Club should not be manipulated by agents.Neither Willian nor Coutinho should be acquired when our priorities lie elsewhere.We need to focus on our needs and not be influenced by the leeches of our game who have one object in life, which is to line their own pockets.
No, No No please, I hate this. He’s not going to be bought to sit on the bench and he will block the development of Nelson if he plays on the wing, and ESR if he plays centrally. We already have super-talented young players leaving because they can’t get a game. How is this going to help? It is a sticking plaster for a season at best. Give Balogun a guarantee of first team football instead.
SeanW , at 5ft9″ I would hardly describe Willian as “diminutive”. He towers above Carzola and Sanchez.
Will be a very good signing at 31 he is still very strong and add quality to the team
The guy will be 32yr next week. Imagine being given a 3yrs contract, accompanied by a huge salary. This is bad news
Yes, bad business. I also doubt Cutinho could add anything to the squad.